~Real Is Stranger Than Fiction~

~A Friend Up On Sunset Ridge Tonight~

Often being up on Sunset Ridge photographing a days end will be a lonely pursuit. With nothing but the coyotes and an occasional owl to keep me company, tonight was different. I arrived at the Ridge tonight to find my friend and fellow photographer, Gene, who already had already had his tripod and camera set up and clicking away. We began to chat, talking about sunsets and cameras, losing track of the distant sky. But a quick shared glance to the south-west brought a cry of "WOW" from the both of us. This is what we saw, swirling bands of red topped by a vortices of oranges and pale blues. WOW!

The mountain silhouette on the left side is probably 5o miles (80km) or more away. I'm noting this just to give you a feel for the immense distances and the enormity of that cloud mass.

And yes, before anyone asks, I am a photo-artist. That being said, I did post-process this image. But the shapes and forms were already there, and the colors, thought a bit more subdued, existed. I merely accentuated and slightly enhanced what the hand of God created.

Thanks for looking, TucsonJim ;o)

A Distant View Made Large

On my calibrated LCD screen, the swirls are a beautiful orange-red and they are slightly subdued. I apologize if you see a garish and overly bright red, I can never adjust for another's screen settings.